With the back-to-school period upon us, there is no question that many of us are concerned about what we or our kids may catch. Let us also not forget that flu season is just around the corner, and with life being as busy as ever, the last thing any of us need is to be out of commission for any lengthy period of time.

Though getting sick is sometimes unavoidable, we all do what we can.  Whether it’s getting the flu shot, stocking up on ginger tea or taking an abundance of vitamins, none of us are immune.  This begs the question, do these things actually work? Do they help in any way? Would it have made any difference if I did absolutely nothing?

Last year, I literally put ginger in everything, believing that it would keep me from getting sick.  Yet, come flu season, I was hit with one of the worst flus of my life.  The year before, I took zero preventative measures, and didn’t get sick at all.  And so, I ask once again, do these remedies actually work? Or are they simply old wives’ tales?

I bring this up now because for the last two weeks, every time I visited a friend or relative (in particular mums with small children), I noticed that their fridge was heavily stocked with orange juice.  I mean, seriously HEAVILY stocked, and when questioned, I’m always met with ‘oh yes, the kids are back in school, you know how it is’ or ‘Hello?? Flu season! Can never be too careful!’. And of course, this comes as no shock, I myself was plied with orange juice growing up as a means of keeping the common cold or flu at bay.

Needless to say, we all got sick nonetheless, yet we continue to carry on this tradition and somehow believe that it works.  So, I decided to do some research and found a few fun facts about our favourite childhood drink and thought I’d share.  Here we go:

Health benefits of orange juice that are actually true:

• High in essential nutrients such as Vitamin C and potassium
• High in fibre
• High in antioxidants
• High alkaline levels

These characteristics do in fact mean that orange juice is good for the immune system; it is a great source of energy, good for reducing acidity and inflammation in the body, and proven to have added benefits for people with heart problems and high cholesterol.  Furthermore, the high alkaline levels have also proven to help with other debilitating ailments, such as poor kidney function and kidney stones.

For those of you wondering why orange juice can sometimes have a bad rep, I say not to worry too much about it, but here are a few things to be aware of. 

A few things to be aware of: 

• High in sugar, so consume in moderation
• Good for overall health, but won’t necessarily prevent you from getting sick
• Aim for freshly squeezed and avoid store-bought as much as possible.

And that’s my 2 cents on the matter! Please feel free to share your thoughts as well… As always, we would love to hear from you!